This general directory lists various legal assistance agencies and other organizations that may be able to provide legal assistance and general information on the subjects
discussed in this book. This directory is not a complete list of every women's
organization in California, and addresses and/or telephone numbers may change.
Many of the organizations listed here may be able to direct you to another
organization that can help you with specific problems.

Legal Aid Societies/Neighborhood Legal Assistance/Legal Services

Legal aid societies are funded by the federal government and usually are open only
to lower income people. Legal aid lawyers handle a wide range of problems,
including ones particular to women, such as sex discrimination in housing, credit
and employment.

An example of a legal aid society in San Francisco is the Neighborhood Legal
Assistance Foundation. The Women's Litigation Unit is a section of this foundation
that handles sex discrimination cases; the Domestic Relations Unit handles divorce
cases.

The Legal Services Corporation is a private nonprofit corporation that funds various
California legal aid societies. It will put you in touch with the legal aid society in
your area.

American Civil Liberties Union

The ACLU is a national, nonprofit organization handling many types of civil rights
problems, including women's rights. The ACLU has its own lawyers and maintains
a referral service to other organizations and women's groups that handle specific
problems.

ACLU referral information numbers for major California cities are:

San Francisco (415) 621-2488
Los Angeles (213) 977-9500

Many local chapters of the ACLU have a referral hotline. Check your telephone
directory.

Sacramento

California Rural Legal Assistance, Inc. (CRLA)

CRLA deals with age discrimination, employment discrimination, housing problems,
pension disputes and nursing home conditions. Although CRLA concentrates on
servicing community groups, it will refer individuals to other legal groups for
assistance. Telephone numbers are:

San Diego

Small Claims Court

Every county has a small claims court -- a special court where people can sue
without a lawyer to recover money or damages not exceeding $5,000. (Code Civ.
Proc., § 116.220.) Check with the small claims court in your county to determine
if that court suits your needs. If your claim for money is higher than the limit, you
may still file in small claims court, but the amount of your claim exceeding the limit
will be forfeited and cannot be recovered in any court. Only by not using the small
claims court and filing in a higher (municipal or superior) court can you ask for an
amount greater than the limit. In small claims court, you cannot be represented by
a lawyer -- you represent yourself. However, you can consult a lawyer beforehand
and some counties offer free legal advice for small claims litigants.

If you are over 18 years of age, you can file a claim in small claims court. There is
a small filing fee. For more information, contact the small claims court in your
county and ask for an information booklet. It is important to be well-prepared when
you present your claim before the judge in small claims court, and to have receipts
and other evidence with you in court to support your claim. (See Code Civ. Proc.,
§ 116 et seq.)

Lawyer Referral Services for Private Attorneys

County and city bar associations and private lawyer referral services direct callers
to local, private attorneys according to the specific legal problem. The first
consultation with the attorney is usually provided at a minimum fee. If you decide
to retain the attorney, you will be charged the regular attorneys' fees, and if you
cannot afford this, you will be referred to a legal aid group. For lawyer referral,
contact the bar association in your city or county or a lawyer referral service listed
in the yellow pages of your phone book.

District Attorney's Office, Family Support Unit

Parents who need legal assistance to collect child support under a court order may
get legal help from the Family Support Unit of their local district attorney's office.
For phone numbers, check your local telephone book.

Divorce: Alternative Services

The Divorce Centers of California, Inc., is one of a number of organizations that
offer nonlegal help in obtaining "do it yourself" divorces in California. Their fees for
a regular divorce range from $95 to $150. For a summary divorce, the fee is $50.
The only additional cost is your particular county's filing fee. Divorce Centers has
offices in Oakland, San Francisco, and Sacramento. Check your local telephone
book for listings under "Divorce Assistance." The California Divorce Council also
offers nonlegal assistance with divorces and is located at 2525
Van Ness, #206, San Francisco, CA 94109, telephone number, (415) 441-5157.

General Information for Women and Referral Services

Commissions on the Status of Women

There are state and local commissions on the status of women.

The California Commission on the Status of Women provides information and
referrals to women. It does not handle legal cases, but it can refer you to agencies
or organizations that may help you. The Commission maintains lists on domestic
violence centers, rape crisis centers, women's centers, women studies
organizations, YWCA organizations, and ethnic group organizations. The
Commission may be contacted at:

There are 31 city and county commissions on the status of women that provide
various services to women. Look in the telephone book under your city and county
to see if there is a local commission near you, or write to the California Commission
for the group nearest you.

Law School Women's Organizations

At most law schools in California there are women's law groups, consisting of
women law students and women law professors. Most of these groups cannot
take legal cases themselves, but they can be good sources of information, advice
and referrals to other groups that can help you.

The University of California campuses that have law schools are:

UCLA
UC San Francisco (Hastings)
UC Berkeley
UC Davis

There are also many private law schools in California. Check your phone directory
for listings.

National Organization For Women (NOW)

NOW has general information on women's issues and is a clearinghouse for
women's problems and related action groups. NOW offices often have staff
lawyers; if not, the office can usually refer you to a lawyer community legal office.
There are NOW offices in the following locations:

Listed below you will find organizations that deal with issues of particular interest
to many women. This is not a complete listing of all the organizations that deal
with women's issues in California, but many of the organizations listed can help put
you in touch with other organizations.

Battered Women's Shelters

There are shelters and organizations in California that provide a safe place to stay,
and counseling for women and their children whose safety is in danger as a result
of beatings and other violence by their spouses and lovers. For emergency help and
more information about where to find safety if you are in danger from your spouse
or lover, contact your local law enforcement agency, police department, or sheriff.
Many shelters have a 24-hour crisis "hotline" for telephone counseling. Listed
below are the addresses and phone numbers for shelters in various counties. These
addresses and phone numbers may become outdated, in which case you should
check your local telephone directory under "Crisis Intervention Service" or call the
Domestic Violence Branch of the Office of Criminal Justice Planning, (916) 323-7449.

Other Services for Victims of Domestic Violence in San Francisco County:

Asian Law Caucus provides legal counseling and representation for immigrant survivors of domestic violence. Services are free for low-income women. Assistance is offered in a variety of Asian languages, as well as in English, (415) 391-1655.

Department of Public Health Rape Treatment Center focuses on
domestic violence. Among other things, health care workers can help
people get the physical evidence they may need to make an assault
case. Crisis intervention, medical care, and individual and group
counseling are also available, (415) 821-3222.

Donaldina Cameron House offers social services mostly to survivors of
domestic violence. Assistance is available in Mandarin, Cantonese,
Shanghainese, Vietnamese, and English. Fees are based on a sliding
scale, (415) 252-8900.

Family Violence Prevention Fund is a nonprofit organization dedicated
to eliminating domestic violence. The agency offers referral services
for counseling, legal, and housing services for survivors and works to
educate the public and train educators who work in the community to
prevent domestic violence, (415) 252-8900.

Nihonmachi Legal Outreach is a nonprofit legal organization that can
help battered Asians and Pacific Islanders in a variety of languages.
Services are offered on a sliding scale and are free to those on public
assistance, (415) 567-6255.

San Francisco Bar Association offers a cooperative restraining-order
clinic for women who qualify under the Domestic Violence Protection
Act. A staff attorney is available to take women through the process
of obtaining a restraining order. Services are offered in Spanish and
English, (415) 982-8416.

San Francisco Legal Assistance Foundation offers a cooperative
restraining-order clinic by appointment once a week. For an
appointment call (415) 864-4722. Representation is also available for
low-income residents of San Francisco in eight languages, (415) 982-1300.

W.O.M.A.N. Inc. offers individual and group counseling for victims of
domestic violence as well as a weekly restraining-order clinic.
Thursday's noon-1:30 p.m. drop-in group session is free; other fees
are based on a sliding scale. Services are offered in Spanish and in
three South Asian languages, as well as in English. (Crisis hotline:
(415) 864-4722.)

Rape Crisis Centers

In 1978, the legislature enacted a grant program to provide support for existing
local rape crisis centers and to encourage the establishment of other centers. Such
centers must maintain 24-hour telephone counseling services for rape victims, as
well as in-person counseling and referral services during normal business hours.
Many of the rape crisis centers in California are listed below. (The general hotline is
toll-free 1-800-448-8888.)

These numbers and addresses may become outdated, in which case you can contact the State Department of Social Services for an updated listing. Also, the lists of organizations concerned with rape and rape prevention are available from
the California Commission on the Status of Women, 1303 J Street, Room 400,
Sacramento, CA 95814-2400, or from the Sexual Assault Branch of the Office of
Criminal Justice Planning, (916) 324-9120.

Victims of Violent Crime

Information and application forms about compensation to victims of violent crimes
may be obtained from the state Board of Control in Sacramento, California, or from
a local victim/witness program or other law enforcement agency involved. Contact:

Long-Term Illness

Housing

If you have problems or questions regarding housing discrimination, you may want
to contact one of the following governmental agencies:

California Department of Fair Employment and Housing

2014 T Street, Suite 210
Sacramento, Ca 95814-6835

District offices are located in Bakersfield, Fresno, Los Angeles, Oakland,
Sacramento, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, Santa Ana and
Ventura. Toll-free telephone number: (800) 884-1684.

United States Department of Housing and Urban Development

777 12th Street, Suite 200
Sacramento, Ca 95814-1997
(800) 669-9777

AT & T Center
611 W. 6th Street, Suite 800
Los Angeles, Ca 90017

450 Golden Gate
San Francisco, Ca 94102
(800) 669-9777

(HUD may be able to assist in problems of discrimination in federally funded
housing and rental properties)

Offices in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Sacramento, San Diego and many other
locations. Call or visit your local office to file a claim or ask questions about state
disability or unemployment insurance benefits.